Is It Possible to Shave off the Ridge in my Forehead?

Thanks for the responses to my previous question. Saw the doctor and scheduled revision surgery for next week. After reviewing before and after x-rays it looks as though the native bone above the ridge was burred and reduced contributing to the indent.

My question is can the center of the forehead be shaved to eliminate the ridge? Is the skull thick enough or is it too dangerous to which the only option is to implant more HA to smooth it out?

Doctor Answers (7)

Sanding Forehead Bone

February 2nd, 2010

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The thickness of the forehead bone and specifically the outer table of the bone will determine what can be done. The last thing you need is an infection, inning of the frontal bone or infection of the frontal sinus underneath it.

To be course (no pun intended) this is similar to sanding and smoothing wood flooring. You need to know the thickness before you start to prevent going through.

Reducing forehead ridge

March 4th, 2010

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The frontal bone can be shaved down with surgical burs. One must be very careful not to over shave the bone in the frontal area due to risk of exposing the frontal sinuses to skin flora, which could lead to chronic sinus infections. So only areas of solid bone can be contoured.

Forehead Lift Pictures

Options for frontal bone ridge

February 2nd, 2010

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The surgeon evaluating you would be the best source of reference after reviewing the CT scan. There are many options ranging from burring down the remaining bone to using bone cement or HA paste as you have mentioned. This may need to be repeated if resorbed.

Reducing the forehead prominence

February 2nd, 2010

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Reducing the forehead prominence can be performed with a burr but has to be done judiciously based upon CT scans or x-rays to determine the thickness of the bone. Underneath the anterior frontal bone is the sinus. If the sinus is invaded it can lead to infections and future problems.

Shaving the forehead

February 2nd, 2010

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As Dr. Aldea has said, it all depends on the tickness of the outer layer of the bone in that region. This varies by the patient and can be determined by your CT scans. The last thing you want is to burr down into an underlying sinus!

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